Part of what lands you the job is your preparedness during the interview. Of course you wouldn’t be there in the first place if your resume didn’t demonstrate that you have the qualifications to fit the role. Once in front of the hiring manager you have an opportunity – an opportunity to sell yourself. The marketing process begins when you send off a well-written resume. To secure the job you need to give them reasons – yes, plural – reasons that you are the right one. You want to grab the interviewer’s attention – demonstrate that you are their ‘Neo,’ i.e. the ONE – the one that will be able to deliver what they need. Here are some tips to help you present your qualifications, skills, and abilities to get the offer:

Develop a list of what you bring: Part of preparing for the interview should include generating a list of the traits and skills you possess that meet the needs of the position for which you are applying. For example, if you are interviewing for a customer service role in a bank you should have examples of customer service roles you previously held and how you consistently surpassed expectations. This might include awards received or letters from satisfied clients. This doesn’t mean that you should pull out a binder full of press clippings, reviews and the flotsam and jetsam accumulated during you long and storied career. Be able to talk about how many customers wrote about you, the types of awards, and situations where you were able to demonstrate your strong attention to meeting the needs of the clients.

Selling yourself: You will have an opportunity during the interview to provide examples of how you will drive value – your sales pitch should provide a strong example of how you achieved results in a previous role. Of course this should be relevant to the business of the company where you are interviewing. For example consider the following:

“During my tenure with XYZ Company I developed a process whereby each employee in my department was trained to handle the responsibilities of other members to alleviate production downtime. This program saved $45,000 over the course of the year and afforded the team the opportunity to develop new skills. My interpersonal skills are exemplary; I am collaborative and focused; and I know I would make a great addition to your team.” – TOUCHDOWN/GOAL/BASKET/HOMERUN, etc.

Now that you have demonstrated why they should hire you, you should be well on your way to negotiating a solid compensation package worthy of your talents!

Again – getting the interview is only part of the battle – I have a laundry list of stories where my resumes have gotten the candidate in front of the decision maker(s) only to have them hit an iceberg and go down like the HMS Titanic. For more information please see my blogs on nailing the interview.

I am reminded here by the old Boy Scout motto – “always be prepared!” I can tell you from experience, once you start going down, it is only a matter of time before you are so far behind the eight ball even Minnesota Fats can’t help you.